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The GreenHouse Group

It Began With Recycling

The GreenHouse Group is a group of students that works on sustainability in collaboration with the DOR. They got their start in fall 2008 when the DOR was looking for students to help organize a large-scale recycling program. They began meeting and by spring 2009, the group of students, with the help of DOR staff, finalized the components of a recycling program for the residence halls and two apartment communities on campus.

These students recommended containers, developed a recycling chair job description; established expectations for the cleanliness and safety in the collection sites; created a statistics gathering and sharing plan; and lastly, created a plan for the preparation of materials as well as the pickup and transportation of those materials to Ames Area Redemption by the DOR. They met with a representative from the Ames Resource Recovery Plant to ensure that this new program would not be a detriment to the City of Ames’ energy needs. They also solicited the support of the program from IRHA, the SUV Council and the Frederiksen Court Community Council. A trial project was approved for implementation in March 2009. During the planning process, the group of students named themselves The GreenHouse Group. Close to 1500 pounds of recycling material was collected and transported during the five week trial project. Materials included wet board, paper, plastics and redeemables.

Based on the success of the trial project, the DOR moved forward with plans to provide recycling to all houses in the residence halls and continue the programs at Frederiksen and SUV. The DOR purchased recycling containers for all houses and contracted with Waste Management to have the materials picked up and taken to a recycling facility.

The full recycling program began in August 2009. Residence Life staff has worked to identify recycling chairs for each house and community.

Current Work

The GreenHouse Group monitors the new recycling program, works closely with DoR facilities and provides ongoing training and support for the recycling chairs. They are also working on other sustainability programs and services for the DOR and collaborate closely with the department's sustainability committee, The Green Team.

Bulletin Board Library

Below you will find links to various bulletin boards that our staff will use in the residence halls. They're great resources for information!